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Springer Alums Share Their Stories at Annual Celebration

Press Release- Monday, May 14, 2012

Alumni of Springer School and Center addressed a gathering of 300 at A Springer Celebration! 2012 on May 2. A 2000 graduate of Springer, Leia Greathouse described going to school and learning as “painful, frustrating and demoralizing” before she transferred to the school for children with learning disabilities in the 6th grade.

Once at Springer, Leia said, “I no longer pretended to be sick in a transparent attempt to hide, but became so involved in my learning that I independently sought out my teachers, asking for more homework so I could prepare for what I thought high school would be like.” Leia now has a Master’s degree and is employed as a speech and language pathologist.

Three other alumni shared their stories at Springer’s premier fundraising event, which raised $112,000 for financial aid and outreach programs. Springer graduate in 1997 B.J. Hill spoke of his struggle to address his learning disability and of his success at Thomas More College where he earned a Bachelor’s degree. He is currently pursuing a Master’s degree at Antioch University. Friends from their Springer days, Matthew Selker and Devon Rich (’96) spoke together about the difference Springer had made in their lives. Both are now college graduates and financial advisors in Cincinnati, and remain close friends.

The event was chaired by Nancy Cooper, whose husband, Randy Cooper, is President of Springer’s Board of Trustees. Local 12 WKRC TV Sports Director Brad Johansen was on hand as emcee and auctioneer for the evening’s program, themed “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” Proceeds from the event will provide critical financial aid and outreach programs for the children and families affected by learning disabilities in our region.

"We had been contributing to a college fund for Avi, but by the end of fourth grade we realized that if something didn’t change, we would never need that money. We had a complete educational assessment done, and when Avi heard the diagnoses of dyslexia, dyscalculia and ADHD, she cried tears of relief. Now we had something we could work with!” - Tiphanie, parent of 2016 Springer graduate